Blue Birthdays
by Achieving Elysium
Summary: Paul isn't sure when birthdays became blue. But somehow for Percy, every year, they were. Five of Percy's blue birthdays through Paul's eyes. Happy birthday, Percy!


**Blue Birthdays**

* * *

He shuffled his feet and ran his fingers through his hair as he waited. Paul Blofis knocked again then stared at the blue _Welcome Home _doormat.

A fourteen-year old opened the door. Paul stared for a moment, thinking, _What am I doing here again? _For a second, silence reigned in the hall.

"Hi," the boy said.

"Hello. You're Percy?" He raised an eyebrow. The boy nodded and let him in.

"Mr. Blowfish?"

"Blofiis, actually," he corrected, feeling every bit of the English teacher that he was. Dear God, he had to deal with this every year in class with new students. Always the _You're name's Mr. Blowfish? _

"Nice to meet you," Percy said. "I've... heard about you." Apparently Sally had prepared for the meeting between boyfriend and son.

"Likewise." Another awkward, tense silence. Then Paul remembered why he was here. He wondered if his face was on fire.

"Happy birthday," he said as the two moved to the living room. "I would've gotten you something, but everything was sort-of last minute. I didn't know what you'd like, anyway." Percy smiled as he sat down.

"Thanks." He sounded a bit hesitant, kind of... scared, even.

"Hey... Is this about your mom?" he asked. Immediately, he knew he'd struck a nerve. Percy looked down and played with a stray strand of hair.

"Look... It's not you, okay? I just don't want my mom hurt." Percy lowered his voice. "She's dealt with enough in her life. I'm not an easy kid, and... Well, the first guy seemed nice, too." He glanced at the kitchen, where Stevie Wonder was playing, and apparently, Sally was making dinner.

"I really like your mom, Percy. She's beautiful, talented, kind, strong.. I don't think I could hurt her, anyway." Percy seemed to accept this. He shot another grin Paul's way.

Then he stood up and clapped a hand on Percy's shoulder. "Now, come on, cheer up a bit! I've never seen a birthday this blue!"

* * *

There was a knock at the door. Paul turned away from the piece of delicious blue cake quite sadly. Sally sure knew how to cook. Especially when it came to baking. Sally went to open the door. She blushed tomato red.

Paul stared. He knew it was rude, but he couldn't help it. He was tall, not too tall, with sea-colored eyes and ink-black hair. He wore a Hawaiian button-up shirt and a hat that said **NEPTUNE'S LUCKY FISHING HAT**. It was probably supposed to be a joke, but as he studied the man, he seemed to have a sort-of surfer/fisher feel about him. The ring in his pocket seemed to grow heavier.

"Pos-" Sally began. "Um, hello." He started to get a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Hello, Sally. You look as beautiful as ever-" Sally turned even more red at this, if possible, and Paul gritted his teeth. "May I come in?"

Sally just squeaked out an answer, which the man seemed to take as a yes. Percy and Tyson entered the room, surprise at the visitor evident on their faces. He walked towards the kitchen, and Paul took this time to introduce himself.

"Hi, I'm Paul Blofis," he said, holding out his hand. He raised an eyebrow and gave Paul an amused smile as they shook hands.

"Blowfish, did you say?" He almost groaned out loud. Almost.

"Ah, no, Blofis, actually."

"Oh, I see. A shame. I rather like blowfish. I am Poseidon." came the reply. Was he mocking Paul? Poseidon. What a strange name.

"Like the god of the sea?" Poseidon's eyes twinkled.

"Very much like that, yes." He gave Poseidon an interested look. Last semester, he'd taught his class a whole unit on Greek mythology, which in Paul's eyes, was incredibly fascinating.

"Well, um, we're so glad you could drop by. Paul, this is Percy's father." Sally looked nervous. The news hit Paul like a ton of bricks. He'd always assumed that Percy's father... well... The velvet box grew even heavier, if possible.

He managed to get out a response. "Ah, I see." Then Poseidon say Percy and Tyson. He smiled widely, the skin around his eyes crinkling.

"There you are, Percy. And Tyson, hello, son!" He could see why Sally had fallen for the guy. He seemed happy, someone who smiled much and was kind, handsome, caring.

"Daddy!"

All Paul could think of saying was, "Tyson is..."

"Not mine," Sally said. "It's a long story." She gave him a strained smile.

"I couldn't miss Percy's birthday. Why, if this were Sparta, Percy would be a man today!" Poseidon boomed, the loud yet familiar voice ringing through the kitchen. Paul perked up at the mention of Sparta. Perhaps they shared more in common than Paul had thought.

"That's true," he agreed. "I used to teach ancient history." Poseidon seemed to brighten at my comment.

"That's me. Ancient history," he said, a joking tone in his voice. "Sally, Paul, Tyson.. Do you mind if I borrowed Percy for just a moment?" They walked out of the room.

A bit later, Percy returned, a sand dollar on his necklace and a blue feeling in the air.

* * *

He stared at the food coloring for a moment. Then he shrugged and dumped it in the batter. Rule no. 1 of the Jackson-Blofis (finally) household: Do not question Sally. Ever. Dangerous things follow if you do not comply.

Sally smiled next to him, grabbing the bowl out of his hands. "You, mister, are done with your part. Frankly, you're quite horrible in the kitchen, dear."

He opened his mouth before snapping it shut. _Do not question Sally. Ever. Dangerous things follow if you do not comply. _He turned and walked out, pausing to press a kiss on her cheek.

A plate of blue chocolate cookies were set down on the table. Sally glanced wistfully out the window at the Empire State Building, it's top still lit up bright blue. Paul just sat with her, blue cookies and all, and wherever he was, wished Percy a happy birthday.

* * *

August eighteenth. It had come as no surprise to Paul when Annabeth Chase showed up on their doorstep and stayed in the apartment. Paul wouldn't have it any other way. The girl was family, whether she knew it or not.

But the only thing missing was Percy.

Paul sighed as he started the engine. He tried not to hit his head because the roof was a tiny bit lower in a spot behind him. He hadn't known Percy's pegasus would land on the roof of his Prius. Next to him, Sally had donned a navy blue shirt and was carrying a picnic basket. Annabeth was wearing blue behind him, too, her skin a little more pale because of sunscreen, and the dark circles underneath her eyes stood out. He looked in the mirror and noticed he didn't look any better. Paul shook his head and stepped on it.

Annabeth helped spread the checkered blanket over the sand. He got another corner. Sally took one side. Paul knew they were all thinking of the same thing. Percy would've been there to help on a corner if he was here. Then they all sat around and cut blue cake and ate blue cookies. Annabeth drew a heart in the sand, and Sally wrote Percy's name over and over again.

"Half a birthday, half an anniversary," Annabeth said quietly.

They all stared at the sea.

* * *

Crying came from the one untouched room in the hall. Paul dropped his things and checked the date. _August eighteenth. _Something inside of him just _broke. _Still, he made his way down the hall, each step heavy. Almost mechanically, he stood and watched Sally cry over her son, curled up on the blue bedspread. Paul looked around. Most of the things were undisturbed. A sheet of paper, dated August 18, 2012 sat on the desk. He stared at Percy's messy, slanted handwriting.

_I love you. _Three words were scribbled on it in blue ink. His vision blurred for a second, and Paul furiously wiped his tears away. He walked to the bed and lay down next to his wife, taking her in his arms. Paul stared at the ceiling fan as it circled again, losing himself in the _whoosh, whoosh, whoosh _as the blades turned.

They were eating dinner when the Empire State Building lit up blue. Paul wondered if this was Poseidon's doing. He knew the god of the seas _did _care about his son, despite rules and all that mumbo jumbo. Sally let out a muffled sob when she saw, and Paul's eyes let out tears despite his theory that his body could not cry after nine months.

Even though Percy and Annabeth were in Tartarus, the gods had given Percy his birthday tradition. Paul had never felt so tired, sad, and joyful at the same time.

* * *

Paul hastily wrapped the box with blue paper. He stripped another piece of tape off of the tape holder thing and slapped the two ends together messily. Then, box under an arm, he grabbed the keys and ran for the car.

He reached the apartment in record time; seven minutes was the product of the car horn, slight speeding, and shortcuts. He might've knocked over a plant or two, but he couldn't be sure. Paul waved at Mr. Hal, the receptionist guy, before squeezing in a closing elevator. There were a few grumbles as he slipped in, but no outright complaints. He pressed **FLOOR TEN **and watched it light up. Tapping his foot, he looked at the occupants of the cramped space. There was a dark-haired woman carrying a baby, a girl holding the hand of a chubby four or five-year old, an old man with a cane, and two teenage boys with mischievous smiles and brown hair. He pegged the last two as troublemakers.

Ding! The old man got off at the third floor. Ding! The woman with the baby and the girl with the younger brother got off at the fifth. Ding! He looked around and realized it was his floor. The two boys followed him out, shuffling their feet and looking around.

They all walked to the same door. Paul froze. Mugglers? Thieves? Stalkers? With a nervous glance at the calm teens, he knocked. The door swung open almost instantly, and he was greeted with a kiss on the cheek by Sally and the smell of cookies. She smiled.

"Come in, Paul!" Her happiness was infectious. He smiled, too, and walked in, looking around. Then Sally noticed the two boys standing outside, looking a little awkward.

"Connor, Travis! Why don't you come in? We have extra food and space to spare, dears. But _please, _if you're going to borrow anything, then you have to return it, " she trilled, her face lighting up at the prospect of more guests. The two boys groaned.

"But Mrs. J-"

"-do we have to-"

"-return _everything_?" Sally crossed her arms, opening the door wider to let them in.

"Yes, yes you do. Now, Paul, this is Connor and Travis Stoll, brothers but surprisingly not twins. Connor, Travis... This is my, um-" She blushed bright red. Paul could feel his cheeks heating up, too.

"-husband. " The voice of Percy Jackson startled him. He turned to see the tall, lanky boy leaning against the couch, cookie in one hand, blue cup in the other. He wore all blue, for some reason, and, he noticed, Sally was, too. In fact, the twins-brothers, he reminded himself- wore blue, too. He looked down at his clothing. A blue polo and tan khakis. For a brief moment, he wondered why he hadn't worn something more casual. He looked like a freaking Best Buy employee.

"Hi," the boys chorused. He just gave a little awkward wave to the birthday boy.

"Hey, guys. I didn't know you were coming. Hi, Paul," Percy said.

"Well, we weren't,"

"-but it's your birthday-"

"-and we thought you-"

"-might like it if-"

"-we returned your things." Paul eyed them warily. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to be creeped out by the sentence finishing. They reached into their pockets, drawing out a ballpoint pen, a piece of paper, a map of the Empire State building, a seriously tiny book, and keys. Sally and Percy just laughed.

"We'll be off, then. Bye, Mrs. J. Bye, Percy!" They said and walked out.

"But-"

"We already took some food. It's okay," Travis or Connor said. They disappeared. Paul just shrugged and handed Percy a blue skateboard.

The cuckoo clock on the wall let out a wooden bird that told Paul it was eleven. They were sitting on the couch, all snuggled up and watching old Disney movies, when out of nowhere, Percy said, "I proposed."

Silence.

Then Annabeth laughed. Paul felt as if the moment had unfroze. He jumped to his feet, ecstatic and a little scared, but happy nonetheless. Sally squealed next to him and ran to hug Percy, then Annabeth. She started gushing something that went along the lines of Letmeseetheringohmygodsohmygodsyouregoingtobemydau ghtershutupshutupahhhwhenstheweddingwhoareyouinvit ingdoesanyoneelseknow, but Paul wasn't sure what she was saying.

His eyes met Percy's over the head of his squealing wife.

* * *

Jason, next to him, asked, "You're not nervous?" Frank nodded along. Percy just threw his head back and laughed.

"Not at all, my friends." Percy, in fact, looked better than he himself had moments before marrying Sally. In fact, Percy didn't look nervous at all. He couldn't stop smiling, that crooked, troublemaker smile on his face as big as ever. He shrugged, mystified by Percy's antics.

"How are you not nervous?" Frank cried. "I'm over here tearing my hair out, and it's not even my wedding!"

"I've been waiting for today for my whole life." Paul decided to leave the boys alone and go to find the girls. He stopped halfway to the door.

"Happy birthday, Percy," he said.

"Thanks," Percy replied, his eyes lighting up. The sound of Percy's laughter followed him as he walked out.

He found the room pretty quickly. Piper was adding the last touch-ups when Paul walked in. Sally was smiling softly at Annabeth, who looked completely at ease, though perhaps a bit irritated as Piper applied mascara or whatever it was called. Frederick Chase, Annabeth's father, who he had met a few times, stood to the side and waved at Paul.

"Hello, Paul," he greeted.

"Frederick. " He kissed Sally on the cheek.

"You all look fantastic!" He wasn't exaggerating. Sally wore a mermaid dress, which was blue and a joke. Her hair was in a fishtail braid, which was another joke. Her soft eyes were inviting as she sent a smile his way.

Annabeth was almost unrecognizable, wearing a strapless bridal gown, an elaborate thing with beads, lace, and embroidery, as well as some other stuff Paul didn't know the name of. Piper had pinned her hair up, covering it with a veil and a small crown on top. He watched as Piper carefully lowered the veil to cover her face. Annabeth turned to him, shadows cast on her face, her grey eyes as piercing as ever.

Then there was Piper, her dark mocha skin almost glowing against her white mermaid dress. Apparently there would be a lot of jokes going around. She didn't wear any jewelry, and she'd taken her Camp Half-Blood necklace and tied it around her wrist. She didn't need jewelry though.

Hazel looked shy in her dress, though the gold earrings on her matched her eyes. Her curly hair was braided back in the same way as Piper and Sally. She smiled when she saw him.

"Thank you," chorused the room. Then Sally gasped.

"I almost forgot!" she cried. She grabbed her purse, shuffling through it. Everyone looked at her in panic. What had she forgotten?

Sally pulled out an old, worn box. She gently opened it, revealing a necklace inlaid with what looked like sapphires. Annabeth gasped quietly when Sally walked towards her. They smiled at each other through the mirror when she fastened the clasp.

"Something blue," Piper murmured.

"Happy birthday, Seaweed Brain."

* * *

**Happy birthday, Persassy! I hope you guys like my addition to the Happy Birthday Percy fanfictions on here, because today is also August eighteenth. (Well, for some of you it's the nineteenth, but its the 18th here.) Yay! I thought I'd do a little Paul because everyone else is doing Percy's POV. **

_Achieving Elysium_


End file.
